DONOVAN WOLFINGTON

Local indie-punk band Donovan Wolfington have concluded their six year run. Those six years saw the Tigers Jaw-esque Stop Breathing lineup transition to a more alt rock soundand noticeably lose vocalist/keyboardist Savannah Saxton before arriving last with 2015’s How to Treat the Ones You Love. Vocalist/guitarists Neil Berthier and Matt Seferian’s respective songcrafts, abstracted candor on the social turbulence of college, and their shared slacker punk character made How to… a fiery musical analogue for cracking open a cold one with the boys.

D-Wolf now share their last recordings together as WAVES before wholly moving onto other projects like Buncho, Pope, and New Holland. WAVES presents Donovan Wolfington as centered on Berthier, already the band’s most forefront voice. Aside from a hip hop beat track by drummer Mike Saladis, D-Wolf propels hooky riffs and combines various early ‘90s punk derivations – more directly evoking a grunge-y Archers of Loaf than ever. Berthier’s lyricism continues to present each song as its own love letter, lit on fire – an urgent farewell to its anxieties and enjoyment of its fiery end – abstracting his bare emotions into smoke signals. “WAVES” is out digitally Friday March 2nd on Community Records via Vinyl LP April 6th.